In this age of ‘Kaliyug’, the word ‘salvation’ represents a hypothetical situation only. Today, all the religious teachers are trying unsuccessfully to explain what is written in scriptures through a web of words, and intellectual reasoning by showing a fear of sin and virtue or heaven and hell to the common man. Our religious teachers, while glorifying the past, give examples of devotees of the ‘Dwapar’ and Treta’ age. The man of ‘Kaliyug’ is not in a position to do those kinds of worships and then they blame him and say that without doing those kinds of worships, it is not possible to attain salvation.

• All the religious preceptors give sermons on sacrifice, austerity, charity, virtue, etc. The man of this age considers this an escapist attitude. If only by detaching oneself from the world, one gets salvation then how many in the world will be able to attain it? Hence, salvation according to them is merely an imaginary attraction and is not a truth.

• One cannot even imagine the highest spiritual state of 'Moksha' (salvation) from what is happening in the world in the name of religion. Salvation means to have the direct realization of God and to become one with HIM. To attain this state, a seeker has to go through a process and before the culmination of this spiritual journey, the numerous unique spiritual experiences that the seeker gets only make one understand the importance of that highest state.

• According to our Vedic philosophy, God is a subject of direct realization and experiencing. A number of erudite men have exhibited their knowledge by writing commentaries on the Bhagavad Geeta. Almost all the religious teachers by creating the fear of sin and virtue, heaven and hell etc. in the minds of people preach them to lead a life of renunciation and austerities.

• Bhagavad Geeta is a scripture that is complete in itself. It gives complete knowledge about all aspects of human life but the secret of Geeta is not this. If from the Bhagwat Geeta, Lord Krishna had given a discourse on 36 chapters to Arjuna barring chapter eleven, Arjun would not have understood anything. The way, the Infinite form of Himself was shown by Bhagwan Shri Krishna to Arjun, provided Arjun a direct realization of God as well as helped him attain complete knowledge too. After this experience, Arjun was transformed and his tone and manner of asking questions changed. Arjun asked the subsequent questions in a very compassionate tone. Hence, how can the man of this age understand the secret of Geeta as was understood by Arjun?

• Every verse (shloka) in the Geeta is a ‘Siddha’ mantra in itself. God resides in this temple in form of Geeta. By seeing the Supreme Lord in it, Arjun attained the divine knowledge. The essence of the Geeta lies in doing what Arjun did after attaining the divine knowledge.

• After intently listening to the entire discourse by Lord Shri Krishna, Arjun was asked by Bhagwan Krishna, if his attachment due to ignorance has been destroyed?

Arjun replied -

• naṣhṭo mohaḥ smṛitir labdhā tvat-prasādān mayāchyuta
  sthito ‘smi gata-sandehaḥ kariṣhye vachanaṁ tava || (18:73)

  O Infallible One, by your grace my illusion has been dispelled, and I am situated in knowledge. I am now free from doubts, and I shall act according to Your instructions.

• At this time, Maya reigns in the world. Our philosophy is based on the principle of faith in God. Therefore, when our religious teachers instead of giving direct realization and experience of God are talking only about the glories of the past, it is futile to blame the prophet-based religions.

It is very difficult to conquer ‘Maya’ and in this regard, Bhagwan Shri Krishna in the 14th verse of chapter seven in the Bhagavad Geeta says-

• daivī hyeṣhā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā
  mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te || (7:14)

  My divine energy Maya, consisting of the three modes of nature, is very difficult to overcome. But those who surrender unto Me cross over it easily.

• To attain salvation, universal mother, Kundalini, after accomplishing the most difficult task of piercing through the six Chakras, three Granthis, and the Agyachakra, finally enters into the world of the Supreme Lord, ‘Satchitananda’ (Anand+Chit+Sat=Bliss+Becoming+Being) . This is the state of attainment of salvation. In this world, the divine bliss of God gives intoxicating joy to the seeker. In the God-intoxicated state, the seeker loses his worldly consciousness. If the Guru doesn’t alert him at this stage, he cannot make any efforts to pierce through the ‘ Anandmaya-kosh’ (Bliss sheath) and the ‘Chittmaya-kosh’ (Becoming sheath) to enter the ‘Sattmaya-kosh’ (Being sheath) or the ‘Sahasrara’.

• Many of my disciples have remained in that state of intoxicating joy for a long period of time. Only when I brought them out of this state that they said, “Gurudev, what kind of joy was that, that we forgot everything else in the world! If you would not have alerted us, we would have remained stuck in this state forever.”

‘Moksha’ (salvation) is attained only when the ‘Kundalini’ reaches the ‘Sahasrara’. In this relation, Goswami Tulsidas Ji has said,

Dharma te virati, yog te gyana
Gyana moksha-prad, veda bakahna

- Goswami Tulsidas Ji

The meaning of the above is- “Study of the ‘Dharma’ develops detachment and by practicing ‘Yoga’ one develops knowledge. This knowledge leads to salvation, this is what the Vedic scriptures say.”

In relation to salvation, Bhagwan Shri Krishna in the Bhagavad Geeta says -

• ā-brahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ punar āvartino ’rjuna
  mām upetya tu kaunteya punar janma na vidyate (8:16)

  In all the worlds of this material creation, up to the highest abode of Brahma, you will be subject to rebirth, O Arjun. But on attaining My Abode, O son of Kunti, there is no further rebirth.
  
  It is only by Yoga that one can attain the state of ‘Sahaj-samadhi’ and by ‘Sahaj-samadhi’ salvation is possible.

Bhagwan Shri Krishna while describing the state of a Yogi says -

• tapasvibhyo ’dhiko yogī
  jñānibhyo ’pi mato ’dhikaḥ
  karmibhyaśh chādhiko yogī
  tasmād yogī bhavārjuna (6:46)

  A yogi is superior to the tapasvī (ascetic), superior to the jñānī (a person of learning), and even superior to the karmī (ritualistic performer). Therefore, O Arjun, strive to be a yogi.

At this time, Yoga has almost disappeared from the world. While describing ‘Yoga’, Maharishi Aurobindo says,

Yoga means union with the Divine- a union which is either transcendental or universal or individual or as in our Yoga, all three together. It means getting into a consciousness in which one is no longer limited by the trivial ego, personal mind, personal vital and body but is in union with the Supreme Power or the universal consciousness or with some deeper consciousness within which one is aware of one’s own inner being and the real truth of existence.

- Maharishi Aurobindo

• In the age-old Guru-disciple tradition of the Siddha Yogis, the Siddha Yoga or the ‘Maha-Yoga’ has been described. Bhagwan Shri Para-Shiva also known as ‘Shri Kanthnath’, whose abode is in Mt. Kailash, is its foremost Guru. In Kaliyug, Yogendra Shri Matsyendranath Ji spread the information about this Siddha Yoga. The immense welfare of the world that has been done through Siddha Yoga by his prime disciple Shri Gorakhnath Ji is well known to everyone.

The following is written in the ‘Gorakh-shatak’ in relation to this Yoga sadhana -

• Dvij se vitshakhasya, shruti kalptaroh phalam
  Shamanam bhavtapasya, yogam bhajat satmah (Gorakh Shatak-6)

  Vedas are like a ‘Kalptaru’- an all-wish-fulfilling tree. Just as all the branches are a shelter for the birds, similarly, the twice-born, Brahmins, study the branches of the Vedas. ‘Yoga’ is an eternal fruit of ‘Vedas’-the wish-fulfilling tree. Make use of this Yoga. This Yoga destroys all three kinds of afflictions- Physical, Material and Spiritual.

• The secret of human life lies hidden in the death and not in the birth. As long as a man is scared of death, he cannot understand the secret of ‘Moksha’ (salvation). ‘Maya’ has made the form of death so dreadful and deformed that the very mention of its name makes the man tremble with fear. Imagine the extent of the manipulation of ‘Maya’ that it keeps the ‘Jeevatma’ in the ‘Jeev-bhaav’ so firmly that it does not allow it to realize the ‘Atma-bhaav’ at all. Unless the secret of death is not understood, ‘Moksha’ remains an imaginary thing.

• Patanjali Yoga philosophy in the 22nd sutra of the chapter ‘Vibhutipad’ says that a Yogi has full knowledge about his death. He is aware of the reason and the time of his death.

• The Holy Bible also expresses similar ideas in this regard. In the Revelation 2:11, it says- “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death.”

• The practical method by which one can have a direct realization of God is described in the Yoga philosophy; Maharishi Aurobindo attained that divine knowledge by following the same method. While describing it, Maharishi Aurobindo says,
  “If the Divine is there, then there must be a way of experiencing HIS existence, of realizing HIS presence; however hard the path, I have taken a firm resolution to follow it. Hindu religion says that that path is within one’s own body and the rules to tread on that path have also been told. I have started following it. Within a month, I have experienced that what Hinduism says is not a lie as whatever signs have been described, I am attaining all those sings and changes in my body.”

• I consider all of mankind entitled to this knowledge. At this time, the ‘tamsik’ tendencies have torn apart this knowledge and have divided people into small groups who out of their ignorance are fighting amongst themselves. These dark tendencies would never like the darkness to be dispelled and replaced by light. This is a firm law of nature that the wheel of time runs with an uninterrupted pace. The Gods of the night never wish the Sun to rise but still, the Sun rises at the prescribed time. I have set out in the world to distribute the ‘Prasad’ that I have received from my Guru by his grace and any endeavour to even think of stopping me in this will be madness.